Connecting and sealing means for coffee-brewing apparatus



y 5 w. D. CURTIS ET AL 2,885,949

CONNECTING AND SEALING MEANS FOR COFFEE-BREWING APPARATUS Filed March 7,1955 INVENTDRS WILBUR D. CURTIS RALPH LPARK By THEIR ATTORNEYS HARRIS,/1/c/-/, FosTER HARRIS United States Patent CONNECTING AND SEALINGlVlEANS FOR COFFEE-BREWING APPARATUS Wilbur D. Curtis, North Hollywood,and Ralph L. Park,

Monterey Park, (Zalili, assignors to Wilbur Curtis Company, Inc., LosAngeles, Calif., a corporation of Caliorma Application March 7, 1955,Serial No. 492,681

7 Claims. (Cl. 99-292) This invention relates to coffee-making devices,and particularly to scaling and pouring structures used with that typeof cofiee-making combination which employs a lower vessel in which wateris to be boiled and forced up into an upper vessel containing the groundcoifee, by effects of the generated steam pressure, brewing taking placein the upper vessel until condensation of the steam in the lower vesselcreates a partial vacuum resulting in return of the brew to the lowervessel from which it may then be dispensed.

. The object of the present invention is primarily to provide for ametallic pouring lip or spout to be attached to a lower glass bowl insealed relationship and to be connected with an upper bowl intemporarily sealed relationship.

a It is another object of the invention to provide an eflicient anddurable seal between a metallic pouring neck of the indicated characterand a depending conduit at the lower end of an upper bowl, such sealingdevice being applicable to upper bowls of either glass or metal.

Another object of the invention is to employ a sealing device of theindicated character which is not subject to heat changes under theconditions employed in cofieemaking, has exceptionally long life, is notbrittle, does not break in use, will not leak, and is relatively easilyproduced from a tough durable non-brittle relatively rigid type ofplastic material as distinguished from either natural in the lowervessel during coffee-making operations and of a length to have its lowerextremity spaced only a short distance from the bottom of the vessel 10,approximately as indicated in Fig. 1.

The vessel 10, which characteristically is provided with a shortupstanding neck 20 of reduced diameter is pro- I vided with an outerannular bead 21 which is received in clamped upon the neck in sealingrelationship by means of an annular clamp band 24, preferably of springmetal and shaped in cross section to correspond with the outer contourof the gasket 22. The band 24 is split and preferably carries betweenits offset ends 24a an appropriate handle member 25, the ends 24a of theclamp band 24 being suitably bound upon flat side portions of the innerend portion of the handle 25, a pair of bolts 26 or other suitable meansbeing employed to bind the ends of the band 24 upon the handle. Suchbinding effects adequate g compression of the gasket 22 to make a tightseal about or synthetic rubber, and which may also be employed incombination with rubber sealing elements associated therewith whenrequired.

Other objects of the invention and various features of constructionemployed in a preferred form will be apparent from a consideration ofthe following specification together with the accompanying drawing.

. 'In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is aside elevation of an assembled coffee-making apparatusembodying one form of the present improve ment;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1 and showingthe sealing connection of this improvement when in operative relationwith respect to a lower receiving vessel and an upper brewing vessel;

- Fig. 3 is a view like that of Fig. 2 showing a variation;

and t I a Fig. 4 is a cross section taken on the line 44 of Figs. 2 and3.

- As illustrated, a cofiee-making combination of this inventionincludesa lower vessel or bowl, commonly of glass, and as generally indicated at10, an upper vessel 12 which may be of glass but commonly is made ofmetal to avoid breakage, and a sealing mechanism between such two"essels as generally indicated at 14 and including a separable, wide,metallic supporting connector and pouring neck 15 normally carried bythe lower vessel 10. As illustrated, the brewing vessel 12 isconventionally provided with a depending tubular conduit 16 connectedwith the uppervessel 15 by a flaring section16aand received the neck 20of the vessel 10 and about the annular bead 21 at the top thereof.

The gasket 22 and the clamp band 24 also assist in mounting upon thevessel 10 the detachable metal connector 15 which comprises a supportingor seating neck member and pour spout 30 and which in practice isproduced from stainless steel and is tubular to receive the dependingconduit or down spout 16 of the brewing vessel 12 and also to receivesealing means presently to be described and carried by the upper end ofsuch depending conduit or down spout 16. The lower portion of themetallic neck member 30 is flared outward and downward as indicated at31, its lowermost portion being in the form of an annular outwardlyextending flange 32 which is received in an inwardly directed annulargroove in the upper extremity of the gasket 22 and is retained thereinby means of the clamp band 24 and an overhanging inwardly directedannular flange 34 thereof which prevents the flange 32 from beingwithdrawn when the v clamp band 24 is in operative position. With thisstructure there is provided an integral upper annular portion of thegasket 22 which acts as a cushioning means between the flanges 32 and 34and also serves as a seal to prevent loss of the subsequent partialvacuum acting to draw down into the glass vessel 10 the brew which hasbeen produced in the upper vessel 12. By reason of a slight bulge 35 inthe upper portion of the gasket 22 opposite its integral inwardlydirected flange 23 and the bead 21 of the vessel neck 20, properretention and sealing of the parts are assured. At the upper end of themetallic spout or neck 30 there is provided an upwardly extending andoutwardly flared pouring lip 40 from which the brewed coffee is readilydispensed when the vessel 12 and the sealing means carried by the downspout 16 thereof are removed. This lip may if desired be slightlyenlarged at one side to be arranged opposite the handle 25 to facilitatepouring procedure, and such enlargement may be eifected, if desired, bysloping the upper edge of the lip 40 upward as indicated at 42 towardthe pouring side.

It will be appreciated that, by producing the separate pouring neck 30,which in effect is a pouring spout, from metal and by employing ametallic clamp band represented by the band 24, such metallic fitting atthe top of the glass vessel 10 greatly reduces breakage of the vessel10, and certainly improves over the breakage possi- Patented May 12,1959,

3, bilities where the pouring neck and spout are integral in a glassvessel corresponding with the vessel'10.

For the purpose of sealing the down spout 16 in the pouring neck or pourspout 30, there is employed a specially constructed annular block 45formed from a durable, heat-resistant, non-brittle, rigid and relativelynon-breakable plastic material, such as a rigid molded body of nylon.While the nylon block 45 might be sized and shaped to be receiveddirectly upon the upper portion of the integral down spout 16 of themetallic upper vessel 12, due to its rigid characteristic, installationand removal are more readily effected by employing an interveningpacking ring 46 of tough but yieldable rubber or rubber-like materialsuch as neoprene, which has a passage or bore 47 to accommodate theadjacent tubular portion of the down spout 16. In order adequately toretain the annular nylon block 45 in the packing rubber 46, the latteris externally annularly grooved to. receive the annular block 45, thefit being tight in order toavoid loss of pressure during boiling and thebrewing operation and subsequent loss of partial vacuum during thereturn of the brew to the lower vessel 10. In the form of Fig. 2,

the packing rubber 46 provides an annular shoulder 46a hangs the annularblock 45 may have a depending outer annular contact lip 49 bearing uponthe top face of the sealing block 45, rather than simply the fiat faceof the shoulder 46a of Fig. 2. Additionally, as illustrated in Fig. 3,the block 45 may have a depending annular rim member 50 which isprovided at its lower end with an integral inwardly directed sealing andretaining flange 52 which underlies the greater portion of the lower endof the packer 46.

In order to effect, ineach of the forms of Figs. 2 and 3, the requiredscaling function between the annular sealing block 45 and the inner wallof the metallic pouring spout 30, the annular block 45, including thedepending rim portion 50 of Fig; 3, is integrally provided with a seriesof radially and outwardly extending spaced thin horizontal fins 54 whichprovide between them correspondingly shallow annular groovesconstituting air pockets. In practice, moisture may accumulate in theseannular grooves or pockets, inasmuch as an absolutely hermetic sealbetween the peripheral edges of the fins 54 and the adjacent inner wallof the neck or spout 30 may not always occur because of slightirregularities. Such moisture results in producing a complete seal. Theperipheral edges of the fins 54 are uniformly aligned to fit theadjacent inner wall of the pouring neck or spout 30 when in engagementtherewith in the seating position illustrated in Fig; 2. In order toinsure a proper seating with relative ease, the intermediate or bodyportion of the pouring spout 30 is tapered slightly, for example around4 or 5' from the vertical, or within a range possibly between about 2and about 6, and the finishing'of the peripheral edges of the fins 54 iseffected at the same angle as the angle of themetal spout member 30.With such arrangement, the friction sealing block 45 is readily moved toand from sealing position in the corresponding seat in the inner taperedwall of the metallic spout 30. Also, since the tough packer 46 will beof an internal dimension to snugly fit the outer wall of the down spout16 of the vessel 12, there will be no loss of pressure or partial vacuumalong the outer wall of the down spout 16. Similarly, by reason of thedescribed interfitting of the packer 46 and the friction-sealing block45, there will be no loss of steam pressure or partial vacuum during thevarious operations.

The metal pouring spout 30 is preferably produced from stainless steelwhich is readily rolled to the indicated shape and configuration, andthe metallic clamp band 24 may be produced from similar material. Aspreviously indicated, the gasket 22 may be produced from a comparativelysoft rubber, although other appropriate sealing material such as anydesirable, heat-resistant elastomer may be used. Also, theyieldingbutrelatively rigid, tough rubber or neoprene of thepacker 46may be replaced with similar plasticmaterial capable of seal ing thejoints indicated and of performing the required functions. In view ofthese seals, the upper vessel 12 which as previously indicated, ispreferably of metaLand the sealing units 45, 46 are readily removedfromtheir seated sealing positions illustrated in Fig. 2 when required,and are readily returned. to such a friction-seal condition.

As to the plastic material employed for the sealing block 45 and itsintegral portions 50 and 52 and its integral contacting fins 54, amaterial thus far found' extremely suitable is a molded nylon. Thismaterial isadequately rigid, is highly resistant to all heat conditionsencountered in the brewing of coffee, andespecially resistant totemperatures at the boiling point of water and well above; itis notbrittle nor frangible, and as a consequence the fins 54 neither cracknor break away'at' their bases from the body' portion 45 nor bend undulywhen being introduced into sealing position or with--' drawn therefrom.However, any other appropriate heatresistant synthetic plastic material,or equivalent material may. be used, it being necessary, however, thatthe block 45 and its fins 54 be of adequate rigidity so as to yield onlyinsignificantly, not crack or break off under the operating conditionsand not soften or yield substantially under the heat conditionsencountered. As above indicated, they most satisfactory material appearsto be molded nylon. The particular nylon used for the finned; block 45may be that known as nylon 8-8, indicating 8 carbons in the chains. Suchmaterial should have a hardness of about Shore 60 Or somewhat harder. Anylon used for this structure is that of DuPont Corporation, as it isoften known, or more accurately E. I. du Pontde Nemours & Co.,v ofWilmington, Delaware, identified in the trade as #1001 having a Rockwellhardness read"- ing of R118. The hardness apparently may vary a fewpoints either way. Other materials which might be used in place of theindicated nylon are beta irradiated polyethylene,polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon), and polytrifluorochloroethylene. Suchmaterials have high tensile strength, and may be processed readily toyield the thin slightly spaced fins 54. In addition to its highresistance to heat, such material also has great impact strength whichincreases with rise in temperature, this being a desirablecharacteristic when it comes to removing the sealing means from thestainless steel pouring spout 3.0 while still hot from thecoffee/brewing operation.

From the foregoing it is apparent that we have. produced a highlyefficient, exceptionally durable seal for quick removal from a pouringspout such as that indicated at 30, especially when of metal, and thatwe have also produced a very desirable, eflicient, durable. connectionbetween a lower glass vessel and an upper vessel, suchas a metallicvessel, employed in the brewing of coffee. With these means the uppervessel 12, which may be of metal, with the packer 46 and nylonfrictionseal' 45' mounted thereon as described, may be inserted into thestainless steel pouring spout 30, and sealed following the filling ofthe lower vessel 10 with water as required. CoflFee as required isintroduced into the vessel 12', and the water boiled to produce steamwhich raises the water intov the, vessel 12 for steeping of groundcoffee contained therein. Steam pressure is readily developed inasmuchas the lower end of the pouring spout 30 is sealed at the neck of thevessel 10 through the gasket 22 and theband clamp 2.4..Similarly,steepinghavingbeen completed and condensation being permittedin the vessel 10, the coffee brew is drawn down into the vessel througha conventional filter at the top of the down spout 16.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a coffee maker: a lower, receiving bowl having a neck; an annularmetal pouring spout having its lower end received on said neck andsecured thereto with cushioning and insulating material therebetween; anupper brewing bowl having a down spout to be received in said neck; atough yieldable rubber-like cushion sleeve upon an upper portion of saiddown spout and having an outer annular groove; and a rigid frictionmember having a flange seating in said groove and provided with aplurality of spaced radial fins frictionally engaging the inner wall ofsaid pouring spout and supporting said down spout and upper bowltherein.

2. A coffee maker as in claim 1 wherein said rigid friction member isnon-metallic and its fins are slightly flexible and non-brittle and havea softening point above the boiling point of water.

3. A coffee maker as in claim 1 wherein said friction member is a nylonblock and said fins are integral therewith.

4. In a coffee-brewing apparatus: an annular metal pouring spout havingan upper pouring edge and having means at its lower end for connectionwith a receiving bowl, the inner surface of such spout providing adownwardly tapering seat; an annular rigid friction member provided witha plurality of spaced radial fins frictionally engaging said seat, saidfriction member being nonmetallic, and said fins being slightly flexibleand nonbrittle and having a softening point above the boiling point ofwater; and a cushion sleeve externally grooved and receiving saidfriction member in said groove, said cushion sleeve being of yieldablerubber-like material to receive a down spout of an upper brewing bowl inairtight frictional relationship.

5. A coffee-brewing apparatus as in claim 4 wherein said friction memberis a nylon block and said fins are integral with such block.

6. A sealing device for a coffee maker including: a tough yieldablerubber-like cushion sleeve having a bore therethrough to seal upon thedown spout of an upper brewing bowl, said sleeve having an outer annulargroove; and an annular rigid friction member having a portion receivedin and positioned by said groove in sealing relation, said frictionmember having a plurality of integral axially spaced radial frictionfins for individually engaging the inner wall of a pouring spout insealing relationship, said rigid friction member being non-metallic, itsfins being slightly flexible and non-brittle and having a softeningpoint above the boiling point of water.

7. A sealing device as in claim 6 wherein said rigid friction member isa nylon block carrying said integral fins.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS214,551 Carey et al. Apr. 22, 1879 729,835 Barnes et a1. June 2, 19031,068,992 Eddins July 29, 1913 1,494,691 Loggie et al May 20, 19241,773,475 Casey Aug. 19, 1930 2,069,939 Browning Feb. 9, 1937 2,175,440Masin Oct. 10, 1939 2,265,615 Stalter Dec. 9, 1941 2,321,411 Morse June8, 1943 2,376,410 Wolper May 22, 1945 2,405,751 McMenarnin Aug. 13, 19462,582,721 Rothkind Jan. 15, 1952 2,587,344 Livingstone Feb. 26, 19522,657,817 Alvear Nov. 3, 1953 2,663,451 Yarnall Dec. 22, 1953 2,664,811Jepson Jan. 5, 1954 2,696,319 Menefee Dec. 7, 1954 2,698,272 Clapp et a1Dec. 28, 1954 2,749,193 Traub June 5, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 426,018 GreatBritain Mar. 26, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OFCORRECTION of the above numbered patent requiring Patent should read ascorrected below.

.Golumn 2', line 51, after "prevent". under boiling conditions and toprevent fie,

vSigned and sealed this 22nd day of September 1959;

(semi Attest:

KARL AXLINE Attesting Ofliccr may 1.2, 1955-? s in the-printedspecification correction and that the said Letters insert m the loss ofpressure ROBERT C. WATSON Commissioner of Patents

